The Connected Home Landscape: Rising Demand for Services Beyond Entertainment

With broadband at near saturation in developed countries, value-added services have become key to future revenue growth for service providers. Home management, energy services, tech support, and healthcare each offer unique value propositions, and companies can leverage these services to establish differentiation, retain customers, and build recurring revenues. Parks Associates presents research on the service combinations that resonate with subscribers and the areas of strong demand beyond entertainment.

Proliferation of connected CE and mobile platforms is driving innovation for a variety of IP services. Tablets, smartphones, and smart TVs are lowering entry costs and removing barriers between different service categories. This interactive panel addresses interoperability requirements, connections between different service categories, and the standards making significant advances to create interoperable products in energy, security, management, and monitoring.

This keynote presents a blueprint for redefining the customer experience by delivering quality-of-life innovations through platforms and service sets.

12:15

Networking Lunch

Research Presentation

13:40

Understanding the Home Automation Value Proposition for Service Providers and Energy Utilities

IP has given new life to the concept of home controls, management, and automation, connecting these services with new, popular platforms such as the smartphone and iPad. Parks Associates presents the latest international consumer research on home automation, including current levels of interest and awareness, steps to attract new customers, and ways to position these services to increase future monetization potential.

Many different types of firms have entered the IP-driven connected home market by deploying new service offerings, new technologies, or new products. This interactive panel examines the complementary roles of utilities, service providers, and manufacturers in the connected home space, opportunities to enhance value through partnerships, and the steps to broaden consumer interest in these offerings.

In 2010, ESNA members announced their intent to publish OSGP as an open standard, enabling independent implementation of interoperable meters and other smart grid devices from multiple vendors on the same network. Built on open ISO/IEC and IEEE standards, OSGP adds additional security and reliability services necessary to properly network and manage devices in the smart grid.

This session addresses the role of the OSGP standard in ensuring the reliability, robustness, and efficiency of the smart grid. Presentations show how OSGP-compliant solutions will enable applications such as point-of-use monitoring and control of power usage, allowing utilities to reduce peak loads and pass on cost savings to consumers. The session also reviews additional benefits to utilities, including the ability to avoid vendor lock-in, purchase best-in-class products, and interoperate with non-utility partners to achieve better ROI and enhanced customer relationships.

Keynote: Leveraging industry standards for more comfort, energy efficiency, and safety at home – presented by QIVICON

Jean C. Kiessling
Head of Business Development & Portfolio ManagementDeutsche Telekom AG

The time is right: By 2020, one-half of all German households could be equipped with at least one "smart home" application. The key driver for mass-market relevance is energy efficiency, which is gaining more and more interest among consumers. According to industry association BITKOM, German private households could save up to 20% of their energy consumption every year through use of smart home energy solutions.

This keynote presents the user perspective and highlights the importance of security, convenience, and a standards-based ecosystem that ties together all individual components to lower investment costs and installation efforts under one umbrella: QIVICON.

The presentation also addresses the benefits of the QIVICON ecosystem, including new partnership opportunities for home appliance manufacturers, security solution providers, utilities, and technical service providers. Mr. Kiessling also analyzes the importance of supporting wireless protocols and security standards in order to provide an open, flexible solution that can be tailored precisely to the requirements of the respective provider.

16:30

The Paths to Deployment for IP Home Services: Energy, Security, Health

Home systems and home management products are converging thanks to IP; however, each service category in the connected home offers a unique value proposition to consumers. No single offering captures the complete market, but bundling can help these IP services go mainstream. This presentation session addresses the opportunities and challenges in deploying IP services and how different companies can best formulate their own IP-based connected home strategies.

Join our breakfast sponsor for a brief introduction of new services solutions for the connected home.

SPEAKER TBA

Research Presentation

9:00

Broadband Services and the OTT Video Challenge

Economic, industry, and consumer trends have propelled worldwide growth of OTT video services, attracting traditional players in video content as well as new participants in retail, CE, and the connected home. This research presentation examines consumer demand and usage to determine the future paths of this market, new players in the OTT space worldwide, and implications for broadband service providers (BSPs).

This interactive panel looks at options for all players affected by the growing OTT phenomenon, from MSO strategies for service providers to partnership opportunities for retailers and manufacturers. Executives and analysts weigh the benefits and risks of each approach as they discuss successful business strategies and revenue opportunities for OTT services.

As consumers increase the number and variety of devices used to consume digital content, service providers are faced with the challenge of providing support for these platforms in a way that enhances customer satisfaction. This interactive panel discusses issues related to technical support in a multiscreen environment, new business models in support services, and specific opportunities to increase brand value and improve consumer perceptions.

In this special fireside chat, German DTH provider Sky and Dutch cable operator Ziggo offer an insider's view on the realities of the OTT and multiscreen markets and discuss lessons learned from offering these services in highly competitive markets.

Consumer desire to have access to content anywhere, at any time, from any device, is driving content into the cloud. This research presentation outlines what is included in a consumer’s “personal cloud,” addresses the growth of the personal cloud, and identifies companies that will benefit most from current and future cloud offerings.

A variety of connected products continue to expand the boundaries of the personal cloud, and new services are emerging to manage the various clouds available to consumers. This presentation session examines new opportunities in the personal cloud, the services most in demand, and the role of operators. Executives and analysts discuss the types of services available, service adoption by consumers, business models now and in the future, and the success factors for a personal cloud service.

Connecting the Consumer to Content – Search, Discovery, and New User Interfaces

Consumers have more ways to access video content than ever before, including smart TVs, set-top boxes, DVRs/PVRs, game consoles, DVD/Blu-ray players, smartphones, and tablets. Each device offers its own use cases in ways to search and access content. This presentation session details consumer expectations for each "screen," examines the challenge in guiding content discovery across various services and platforms, and analyzes existing approaches and new innovations that will improve ARPU.

Consumers are increasingly turning to a wider variety of devices to view and interact with content of all kinds, and video advertisers are learning to harness this growing trend to reach their target audiences more effectively. Through its work with some of the world’s best-known digital agencies and brands, YuMe has uncovered trends and insight about consumer behavior as society makes this shift to multiple screens as the norm.

In this session, Owen Hanks, General Manger of YuMe Europe discusses best practices for effectively engaging today’s increasingly multiscreen consumers. Hanks also suggests future multiscreen service innovations as well as referencing recent groundbreaking studies on connected TV and multiscreen ad effectiveness.

16:15

The Value of Multiscreen Video - Moving Consumers to Premium Services

Operators, broadcasters, OTT service providers, CE manufacturers, and retailers are all battling for a share of the video consumers' attention and spending. Multiscreen services are often the foundation of their market strategies, but each player must adjust to cope with changing technologies, market dynamics, and consumer behaviors. This interactive panel examines the value of multiscreen services to consumers, the challenges in European and global markets in driving adoption of premium video services, and ways to build sustainable multiscreen business models.

CONNECTIONS™ Europe features sessions with leading executives in digital living and Parks Associates’ current consumer and industry data, providing comprehensive examination of the technologies and business strategies best poised to move this industry forward.

The event offers multiple sponsorship options to display your company's solutions and vision to an audience of top executives and international media in the digital living markets. View Sponsorship Opportunities.